Throughout the country, it is common practice for newspaper publishers and distributors to sell newspapers by means of coin-operated vending machines strategically located adjacent store fronts, street corners and the like.
The most common form or type of newspaper vending machine consists of a box-like cabinet in which a supply of newspapers can be deposited, in stacked relationship, and which has an access opening at one side. The access opening is normally closed by a manually operable hinged door or closure. The closure is normally releasably latched in closed position by a coin-operated latching device.
To purchase a newspaper from such vending machines, a purchaser deposits necessary coinage in the machine to effect unlatching of the door. Thereafter, he manually opens the door and manually engages and removes a newspaper from the stack of newspapers stored within the machine. Having obtained his newspaper, the purchaser releases the door. The door automatically closes and is relatched, preparatory for recycling by the next purchaser.
The principal or major shortcoming in the above noted common form of newspaper vending machine resides in the fact that any purchaser can, upon depositing required coinage for one newspaper, remove the entire supply of newspapers and sell the misappropriated newspapers for personal economic gain or remove the entire supply of newspapers to remove and collect various coupons published therein and which are tradable for merchandise, cash refunds and the like.
One major newspaper, the Los Angeles Times, owns and operates about 5,000 vending machines of the character referred to above. It is further understood that the Los Angeles Times has determined that theft of newspapers from those machines results in a loss of revenue amounting to nearly 3 million dollars each year.
In the past, the prior art has sought to provide more sophisticated theft-proof coin-operated newspaper vending machines which are such that free access to the supply of papers is not afforded and machines which are such that upon the depositing of appropriate coinage, a single newspaper is dispensed.
While certain of the more sophisticated and theft-proof forms of newspaper vending machines alluded to above have met with some success, each has proven to be wanting in one way or another.
As the art of newspaper vending machines has developed and the shortcomings of old machines have been overcome by improvements, the machines have become notably more costly and complicated to make, maintain and to service. As a result of the foregoing, the capital investment and the cost of maintenance and service of those theft-proof vending machines provided by the prior art, which might be serviceable and dependable in use, exceeds or is so close to the losses experienced in the use of the first noted non-theft-proof or common form of newspaper vending machine that adoption and use of the more sophisticated machines is not economically practical.
The major problems encountered in the handling and dispensing of newspaper machines in coin-operated newspaper vending machines are the result of or caused by the fact that newspapers are rather loosely laminated and softly folded bodies of rather weak and fragile newsprint (paper) and are thereby so weak, fragile and dimensionally unstable that most forms of dispensing mechanisms found in the art of vending machines tend to mutilate newspapers and/or are easily fouled by the newsprint. Further, newspapers are subject to wide differentials in thickness and weight and are such that most dispensing mechanisms provided by the prior art of vending machines would have to be carefully and accurately adjusted and set to effectively handle each new edition of the newspaper dispensed thereby. Finally, most newspapers print and publish regular weekday editions which sell for one price and print and publish Sunday editions and other special editions which sell for a different price. Accordingly, a newspaper vending machine, to be truly effective and practical in use, must be such that it can be easily and quickly adjusted and set to receive and to be operated by different coinage.